Volume 2, Issue 1

Table of Contents

CAL Leadership

Past Issues

A panel comprised of appellate judges from jurisdictions with diverse approaches to interlocutory appeals convened at the CAL conference in Reno. The panel consisted of Judge Edward Leavy of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Chief Judge Eugene Pigott of the New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, and Judge Margaret Vergeront of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals. The panel was moderated by Professor Alan Morrison.

Judge Leavy began by discussing the federal approach, which is also the most stringent. The federal approach allows appeals as of right from final judgments with very limited exceptions for interlocutory appeals. Next, Chief Judge Pigott described the New York model, which is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the federal approach. Under the New York approach, virtually anything is appealable. Chief Judge Pigott jokingly referred to his state as the "Field of Dreams" of appeals - if you appeal it, we will come." Lastly, Judge Vergeront presented Wisconsin's middle-of-the road approach to interlocutory appeals. In addition to appeals as of right from final judgments, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals has discretion to grant parties leave to file interlocutory appeals based on certain criteria.

*Gina McCoy is an appellate practioner with the firm Horvitz & Levy LLP in Encino, CA.